5 Ways Startups Can Repurpose Content to Stretch Their Resources

When you’re running a startup, things are tight. You have to stretch resources to make them last, cut corners to save money when you can, and always try to do more with less.

Thankfully, there are some tricks you can employ to get the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to content marketing.

Through content repurposing, you can take one existing piece of content and find multiple ways to turn it into something new. This process alleviates stress on your team, stretches your resources, and gives you more opportunities to connect with audiences while doing less work.

Here are a few examples of how you can repurpose content and get more results from your efforts.

#1) Combine existing content to create a new asset.

One of the easiest ways to repurpose content is to take existing assets and combine them to create a new, more thorough and in-depth asset. This process requires very little new content creation. You may just need to add an introduction and conclusion.

For example, you could take ten blog posts that touch on the same topic and turn them into a detailed ebook. Or, you could take a series of social media graphics and organize them into a blog post that talks about the theme of the images.

To plan for this type of content repurposing, be intentional about your editorial calendar. Organize the flow of your content ideas so they fit a theme. Scheduling similar posts in a row will make it easier for you to take the completed content and combine it to create something new.

#2) Disassemble existing content to create new assets.

You can assemble content pieces to create a new asset, and you can do the opposite. You can break apart larger content assets to turn them into multiple, smaller items.

If you have a multi-page sales guide, break out sections and turn them into blog content. Take pieces of a large infographic and turn them into individual images for each social media site. Or, even pull quotes out of a lengthy interview to create catchy social graphics.

Make sure that none of your content goes to waste by keeping a detailed content library that lists all of your assets. Then, when you are in a bind and need to create something fast, you will have a long list of options to choose from.

#3) Turn existing content into a new medium.

Breaking apart or combining assets aren’t the only ways you can turn existing content into something new and fresh. You can also alter the medium entirely. You can take content that was published as one content type and republish it as a new medium.

A lengthy video could be republished as a podcast, or it could be transcribed and published as a blog post. The blog post could then be turned into a slideshow presentation. From there, the content could be turned into a series of graphics that you use for social media marketing.

As you consider your content, try to image your work in a different format. Think about all of the different types of media that exist (copy, video, animations, graphics, audio, etc.), and visualize how you repurpose your existing content by changing its medium.

#4) Use one topic or idea as inspiration for multiple content assets.

It’s not just content that can be repurposed into something new. This process also works with ideas. You can take one powerful piece of research, a case study, or a new and innovative concept and use it in multiple ways.

If you publish a case study PDF, write a post that shares details from the case study on your blog. Also, publish guests posts on other sites that offer insights from your case study. Go on a podcast to discuss what you learned from the case study or produce an infographic sharing data from the case study and publish it on your site or other third-party sites.

When you come up with original, creative ideas or data, don’t limit their use to one piece of content. Get the most out of your innovative or fresh concept by creating multiple content assets that share your perspective or insights.

#5) Republish the same content in multiple places.

The last way to repurpose content may be the easiest of all because it doesn’t require you to create any new content. It only requires you to republish your existing content in other places around the web. Republishing content is a little like copying and pasting the exact same copy or media from one platform to another.

You could do this if you wrote a blog for your website and then syndicated it on other websites. Or, if you wrote a guest post and then also published it on your site, or published an article on Medium or LinkedIn and then also published it on your blog.

If you choose to repurpose content in this way, it’s extremely important to know rules about duplicate content. Search engines do not like to see the same content published on multiple websites. So, you must republish in a way that pleases search crawlers. If you republish content, add a rel=“canonical” tag on the republished post that points back to the original version. This tag tells search engines that the post is meant to be a duplicate, and it will help you avoid any search penalties that could be given out as punishment for stealing or swiping content from other sites.

Remember, always repurpose content with a purpose.

As with all digital marketing efforts, there should be a purpose behind each content campaign you create. This is especially true for startups who have limited resources. You do not want to exert time or energy creating content for no reason.

Each time you create something new or repurpose content, always make sure it fits into a bigger plan. Design your content so every new asset fits into your sales funnel and serves a purpose for attracting new readers, generating leads, or triggering conversions.

If you need help with developing ways to fit your new, existing, or repurposed content into your sales funnels, get our free ebook. The PDF guide explains how to use content marketing to design lead funnels that will keep your sales pipeline full of qualified, interested potential buyers and customers.